Gaming, Unboxings, Interviews, Ramblings, Other Things

Free 2 Play: The Next Evolution of Gaming…Or The Great Gaming Deception?

Ever since I joined the PC gaming world…the words Free To Play have always (and most likely will always) excite me. With all the $60 brand spanking new games out there…Who doesn’t like free stuff?! Especially when it comes to games!

I’m constantly finding myself scouring the depths of the internet (Steam included) looking for my next Free 2 Play nugget of gold waiting to be downloaded to my rig.

Most Free 2 Play games are just that…free to play…there are some developers out there however, who are using these three words to speak to your emotions…and sneak into your wallets!

I’m referring to the dreaded PAY WALL more often than not, you’ll run into a specific feature in some games, that requires you to spend real-life-hard-earned-cash in order to have some sort of advantage (also known as Pay-to-win)…or even access a part of the game that’s locked behind a door which only your money can unlock…

Don’t get me wrong, this is an excellent way to gain financial support for your developments (we all gotta eat) there’s a fine line in the sand, that many of these F2P devs cross constantly…

In my humblest of opinions, when you mess with the very mechanics of the game…making it easier to win…giving those who spend money on the game a huge advantage over the free players so that money trumps skill…this in my mind is breaking the very fabric of the gaming experience.

It’s one thing to charge for purely cosmetic items, so that your avatar can be made more unique when cruising through gaming lobbies…it’s when you allow people to pay money to skip the leveling process in an MMORPG (which in effect removes a chunk of the game itself) or purchase powerful weapons in an FPS exclusive to real cash money spenders…this throws the game off balance.

Free To Play should not equal Pay To Win…someone who spends 100 dollars on a game should not have an advantage of any kind over someone who spends 0 dollars and 0 cents on the game (except maybe looking cooler).

As I stated earlier, there’s a fine line between a truly free to play model with little spends here and there to support your favorite developers while looking a bit more stylish (micro transactions)…and using Free 2 Play to hook gamers into a game that’s really Pay To Win…

I just don’t know where that balance lies…

What are your thoughts? Have any Free 2 Play titles that you think are just dandy? Hit me up! Let me know in the comments below! Let’s have a chat!